Page 50 of Divine Oaths

“Oh, my mistake. Of course. Try again.”

I typed in the student ID number I’d seen in the vision. The screen reader flashed green, but from behind the desk where the receptionist sat looking at her computer, she frowned.

“Emma?” she said, glancing between me and the photo ID of a Black girl who looked like she was in a punk rock band, piercings and all. She squinted for a moment. “What happened to your tattoos?”

“They were temporary. It was a phase,” I said, rolling my eyes for the bit.

The receptionist looked uncertain, but she waved me in.

Inside, the department lounge was less crowded. A few research scholars sat at desks with their heads bent over their computers, while others hunched over books and engaged in whispered conversations.

I spotted Jojo in the back, at a small table with two of his peers. He chatted easily with them, even as he focused intently on transcribing information from a worn, leather-bound journal onto his computer. When he glanced up and caught me watching him, he hesitated, closing the journal and slipping it into his bag as he waved me over.

“Sianna,” he said. “Good to see you here.”

Him performing this way in front of the other two researchers was infuriating.

“We need to talk.”

“My colleagues and I are actually in the middle of something.”

Ignoring him, I pulled out the letter I’d brought from my bag, the one I’d found in Jojo’s car with the bracelet.

“I know about the curse,” I said.

Jojo’s fake smile fell. He swallowed, glancing between the other researchers and then back at me.

“All right,” he said. “Let’s talk.”

“What do you want to know?” Jojo asked.

Desperate for privacy, he’d drawn us chairs near a series of bookshelves that obscured us from view.

“I don’t know,” I said. “Where do you want to start?”

“That’s not specific enough, Sianna.”

I rolled my eyes, crossing my arms and leaning forward so others wouldn’t hear.

“How about the fact that you lied to me about who you are? That you haven’t even told me how you got the bracelet after the stabbing? Or maybe start at the family curse you and Kasem are bound to?”

“I don’t have a family,” Jojo said. “Kasem and I, as you are very aware, aren’t on good terms. Our father is dead and our mother is in no condition to support us, let alone herself. So, no, I wasn’t lying to you and Louisa.”

“But when I asked you about the Saint James family in the mall—”

“I told you the truth. My family is twisted and there’s a lot of pain and trauma we’ve been through. You of all people should understand what it’s like wanting to be known for more than just your name but for who you are, as a person.”

I recoiled at his words. “Don’t act like you know me. You don’t anymore. And don’t bring up my family.”

“Well, someone should,” he snapped. “You’re at Westfield, your dream school. And instead of attending classes and being the brilliant performer you are, you’re wasting your time with my brother in private terraces. And yes, I know about that. Everyone does. They’re calling you his new toy. That or saying you’re trying to finish what you started in the alley.”

“Well, I guess that means we have something in common,” I said, glaring at him. “Kasem thinks you’re the one who tried to kill him.”

“He can think whatever he wants. I couldn’t care less. But he has no right bringing you in this. It’s our curse, our family. If you’d attended Westfield on your own right, that would be different. But if you came here because of him—”

I held up the bracelet, cutting him off by showing him the translucent mark on my wrist.

“I came here because of this,” I said. “I’m bound to him now. So, no, I didn’t exactly have a choice. But my powers are unraveling, and until the curse breaks or I find some way to fix this, then it won’t matter whether I’m suffering in Westfield or somewhere else.”